Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 2
भगवान्स्वां सतीं भार्यां वधार्थं चापि तारकम् । सत्याश्च विरहात्तप्यन्ददाह किमसौ स्मरम्
bhagavānsvāṃ satīṃ bhāryāṃ vadhārthaṃ cāpi tārakam | satyāśca virahāttapyandadāha kimasau smaram
Ang Panginoon ba—upang maganap ang pagpatay kay Tāraka, at dahil sa pagliyab ng dalamhati sa pagkawalay sa Kanyang tapat na asawang si Satī—kaya Niya sinunog si Kāma (Smara)?
Unspecified (context: dialogue continues; likely Sūta/Lomaharṣaṇa narrating within Māheśvarakhaṇḍa)
Tirtha: Himālaya (tapas-bhūmi)
Type: peak
Listener: devarṣi (respondent)
Scene: Arjuna’s pointed question visualized: Śiva, scorched by Satī’s separation and intent on Tāraka’s end, opens the third eye; Kāma (Smara) is reduced to ash, while the cosmos holds its breath.
FAQs
Desire (kāma) is subordinated to dharma and divine purpose; even cosmic events serve the restoration of order.
No specific tīrtha is praised in this verse; it is a mythic-theological setup within the Kaumārikākhaṇḍa narrative.
None explicitly; the verse frames the cause behind Kāma’s burning and the divine mission regarding Tāraka.